REiLI, FUJIFILM’s Artificial Intelligence in support of operators involved in the fight against COVID-19 at the “Ca' Granda Ospedale Maggiore Policlinico” hospital in Milan

Artificial Intelligence is an essential tool for the healthcare operators on the front line in the fight against the Coronavirus pandemic and this is why the new REiLI technology of Fujifilm Medical Systems was chosen and implemented by the “Ca' Granda Ospedale Maggiore Policlinico” hospital in Milan.

28.04.2020

The professional relations between the Polyclinic of Milan and Fujifilm Italia have developed over the years with ever-increasing synergism in particular with the medical staff through the use of the 360° imaging management system at the facility and in the operating units where they operate. This new solution is a step forward in the sign of excellence in terms of cutting-edge technology, designed to reduce the difficulties caused by the rapid spread of COVID-19 and to improve and speed up diagnosis. In fact, the Coronavirus infection has undeniably upset the operation of all Italian hospitals, increasing their workloads significantly. In this setting, major progress is brought about by the new technology, which integrates perfectly with the entire hospital workflow from the booking to the performance of emergency examinations and diagnoses in the operating room or intensive care units.

REiLI, Fujifilm’s Artificial Intelligence platform, is integrated with the Lunit Insight CXR module for the analysis and detection of the main types of pulmonary disease (nodules, atelectasis, fibrosis, calcifications, cardiomegaly, etc.). In fact, the Lunit Insight CXR3 module has been updated to provide support in identifying the pulmonary parenchymal consolidation caused by the virus. The processing of CT scans and chest X-rays provides important support for radiologists, offering them an extremely rapid, quantitative and objective assessment of the zones of the lungs. The chest X-ray, in particular, is the best target for applying the new AI technology in that it is a quick and simple examination that provides a large amount of information useful for evaluating the presence of the pulmonary parenchymal consolidation caused by the virus.

The data obtained from artificial intelligence do not replace the molecular diagnoses performed using the nasopharyngeal swab (RT-PCR) and, above all, do not replace the precious analyses and diagnoses performed by the radiologist but they provide support in reporting on the daily examinations conducted to monitor and study the development of the disease and constitute a second opinion for the operators.

For this reason, together with Prof. Gianpaolo Carrafiello, Full Professor and Director of the Department of Diagnostic Imaging and Radiotherapy of the Hospital, Fujifilm Italia has increased the potential of the platform and the artificial intelligence system has opened to “Alternative Intelligence”, a new operating concept projected towards collaborative intelligence between machine and man. The doctor’s know-how and experience in the field are backed up by technology along the care pathway, by providing tools and keys for rapidly and proactively interpreting diagnostic images.

“Today, Artificial Intelligence has led to a widespread use of applications aimed at helping with everyday activities" - explains Davide Campari, General Manager of Fujifilm Medical Systems Italia - "We at Fujifilm strongly believe that the use of Artificial Intelligence can represent a valid tool for optimizing the workflow, by lightening and supporting workloads involved in the diagnosis and monitoring of the course of the COVID-19 disease. Even during this critical period, we have made every effort to provide our most advanced technologies. In this unprecedented situation, REiLI supports the specialists, through man-machine interaction that provides support to increase the efficiency of decision-making processes.”